Bargain Hunting May Contribute To Sharply Higher Open On Wall Street

The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a sharply higher open on Friday, with stocks likely to regain ground following the sell-off seen in the previous session.

Traders may look to pick up stocks at reduced levels following the steep drop seen on Thursday, which dragged the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 down to their lowest closing levels in six months.

The nosedive also pulled the S&P 500 into correction territory, as the index plunged by more than 10 percent from February’s record highs.

Positive sentiment may also be generated in reaction to news the U.S. is likely to avoid a government shutdown after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, said he would vote to advance a Republican spending bill funding the government through September.

While Democrats oppose the bill, Schumer argued allowing President Donald Trump to “take even much more power via a government shutdown is a far worse option.”

However, some traders may remain reluctant to get back into the markets amid ongoing concerns about the economic impact of Trump’s trade policies.

Stocks moved sharply lower over the course of the trading day on Thursday, more than offsetting the gains posted during Wednesday’s session. The major averages tumbled to six-month closing lows, with the S&P 500 entering correction territory more than 10 percent below February’s record highs.

The major averages ended the day off their worst levels but still firmly negative. The Nasdaq plunged 345.44 points or 2.0 percent to 17,303.01, the S&P 500 slumped 77.78 points or 1.4 percent to 5,521.52 and the Dow dove 537.36 points or 1.3 percent to 40,813.57.

The sell-off on Wall Street came amid ongoing concerns about President Donald Trump’s trade policies after he suggested the U.S. would respond to the European Union’s countermeasures with even more tariffs.

With the EU saying it would impose tariffs on approximately $28 billion worth of U.S. goods in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, Trump indicated the U.S. would react with reciprocal tariffs

“Whatever they charge us with, we’re charging them,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday. “Nobody can complain about that.”

Trump later threatened in a post on Truth Social to impose a 200 percent tariff on all wines, champagnes and alcoholic products coming out of the EU in response to a “nasty” 50 percent tariff on whisky.

Meanwhile, traders largely shrugged off a Labor Department report showing producer prices in the U.S. were unexpectedly flat in the month of February.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand was unchanged in February after climbing by an upwardly revised 0.6 percent in January.

Economists had expected producer prices to rise by 0.3 percent compared to the 0.4 percent growth originally reported for the previous month.

The report also said the annual rate of growth by producer prices slowed to 3.2 percent in February from an upwardly revised 3.7 percent in January.

The annual rate of producer price growth was expected to dip to 3.3 percent from the 3.5 percent originally reported for the previous month.

A separate report released by the Labor Department unexpectedly showed a modest decrease by first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended March 8th.

“Financial markets are paying more attention to announcements from the White House about tariffs and job cuts than the hard numbers,” said Bill Adams, Chief Economist for Comerica Bank.

Computer hardware stocks showed a substantial move to the downside, dragging the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index down by 2.9 percent to a nearly four-month closing low.

Significant weakness was also visible among retail stocks, with the Dow Jones U.S. Retail Index tumbling by 2.6 percent to its lowest closing level in well over four months.

Software stocks also saw considerable weakness on the day, as reflected by the 2.3 percent slump by the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index.

Adobe (ADBE) led the sector lower, plunging by 13.9 percent after reporting better than expected first quarter earnings but providing disappointing second quarter guidance.

Housing, brokerage and commercial real estate stocks also saw notable weakness, while gold stocks were among the few groups to buck the downtrend amid a sharp increase by the price of the precious metal.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are climbing $0.56 to $67.11 a barrel after slumping $1.13 to $66.55 a barrel on Thursday. Meanwhile, after surging $44.50 to $2,991.30 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are rising $15.70 to $3,007 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 148.78 yen versus the 147.81 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Thursday. Against the euro, the dollar is valued at $1.0905 compared to yesterday’s $1.0852.

Asia

Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Friday after U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he plans to vote for a Republican bill to fund the government through September, helping ease worries about a potential federal government shutdown.

The dollar was broadly firm as U.S. President Donald Trump threatened a 200 percent tariff on European wine, Champagne and spirits if the European Union goes forward with a planned tariff on American whiskey.

Gold was slightly lower after hitting a fresh record high. Oil prices jumped more than 1 percent following new U.S. sanctions targeting Iran’s oil industry.

Chinese and Hong Kong markets rallied after Chinese authorities announced late on Thursday that they would hold a press conference on “boosting consumption” on Monday.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index surged 1.8 percent to 3,419.56 led by buying in consumer-related stocks. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 2.1 percent to 23,959.98.

Japanese markets rose notably as investors bought chip-related and other beaten-down stocks ahead of the fiscal-year end.

The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.7 percent to 37,053.10, reversing early losses. The broader Topix Index settled 0.7 percent higher at 2,715.85. Fujikura soared over 8 percent, Advantest surged 5.3 percent and Toyota Motor added 1 percent.

Seoul stocks fell, with the Kospi ending down 0.3 percent at 2,566.36 to extend losses for a second straight session.

SK Innovation plunged 5.2 percent, LG Chem slumped 4.7 percent, POSCO Holdings declined 2.6 percent and Hyundai Motor dropped 1.2 percent. Tech stocks outperformed, with SK Hynix surging 2.4 percent.

Australian markets advanced, led by mining stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.5 percent to 7,789.70 but ended with its third-largest weekly loss this year. The broader All Ordinaries Index closed 0.6 percent higher at 8,013.30.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index closed up 0.5 percent at 12,266.25.

Europe

European shares have moved mostly higher on Friday but are on track for a weekly loss on heightened trade tensions and growing concerns about an economic slowdown.

Investors shrugged off official data that showed the U.K. economy logged an unexpected contraction at the start of the year on a sharp fall in production.

Gross domestic product shrank 0.1 percent on a monthly basis in January, following 0.4 percent growth in December, the Office for National Statistics reported. GDP was expected to grow 0.1 percent.

The German DAX Index is up by 1.9 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 1.2 percent and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.7 percent.

Among individual stocks, Daimler Truck Holding has rallied after if forecast 5-15 percent increase in operating profit for 2025.

German automaker BMW has slumped after posting a 37 percent drop in annual profit and warning of subdued Chinese demand.

Universal Music Group has plunged after hedge fund Pershing Square Holdings cut its stake in the company.

Kering has plummeted in Paris after an announcement that Georgian designer Demna is set to exit Balenciaga to become creative director of Gucci.

U.S. Economic News

The University of Michigan is scheduled to release its preliminary report on consumer sentiment in the month of March at 10 am ET.

The consumer sentiment index is expected to dip to 63.1 in March after tumbling to 64.7 in February. The report also includes readings on inflation expectations.